Richard Urquhart Goode (December 8, 1858 – June 9, 1903) was an American

geographer A geographer is a physical scientist, social scientist or humanist whose area of study is geography, the study of Earth's natural environment and human society, including how society and nature interacts. The Greek prefix "geo" means "earth" a ...

and

topographer Topography is the study of the forms and features of land surfaces. The topography of an area may refer to the land forms and features themselves, or a description or depiction in maps. Topography is a field of geoscience and planetary sc ...

with the

United States Geological Survey The United States Geological Survey (USGS), formerly simply known as the Geological Survey, is a scientific agency of the United States government. The scientists of the USGS study the landscape of the United States, its natural resources, ...

, Northern Transcontinental Railroad Survey, and the

Panama Canal The Panama Canal ( es, Canal de Panamá, link=no) is an artificial waterway in Panama that connects the Atlantic Ocean with the Pacific Ocean and divides North and South America. The canal cuts across the Isthmus of Panama and is a conduit ...

Company.

Early life

Goode was born in

Bedford, Virginia Bedford is an incorporated town and former Independent city (United States)#Virginia, independent city located within Bedford County, Virginia, Bedford County in the U.S. state of Virginia. It serves as the county seat of Bedford County. As of the ...

. He was the son of Sarah "Sallie" (née Urquhart) and

John Goode Jr. John Goode Jr. (May 27, 1829 – July 14, 1909) was a Virginia attorney and Democratic politician. He served in both the United States Congress and the Confederate Congress, and was a colonel in the Confederate Army. He was Solicitor Gener ...

, a Virginia lawyer, politician and

Solicitor General of the United States The solicitor general of the United States is the fourth-highest-ranking official in the United States Department of Justice. Elizabeth Prelogar has been serving in the role since October 28, 2021. The United States solicitor general represent ...

under

President Grover Cleveland Stephen Grover Cleveland (March 18, 1837June 24, 1908) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 22nd and 24th president of the United States from 1885 to 1889 and from 1893 to 1897. Cleveland is the only president in America ...

. Goode attended the Hanover Academy in

Norfolk, Virginia Norfolk ( ) is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. Incorporated in 1705, it had a population of 238,005 at the 2020 census, making it the third-most populous city in Virginia after neighboring Virginia Be ...

, and the Norfolk Military Academy also in Norfolk, with his cousin Frank Urquhart. Later, he attended the

University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a Public university#United States, public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. Founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson, the university is ranked among the top academic institutions in the United S ...

for several terms where he studied geography. Goode served as an assistant in the Army's Engineer Corps (now

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers , colors = , anniversaries = 16 June (Organization Day) , battles = , battles_label = Wars , website = , commander1 = ...

) from 1877 to 1878.Wilson, H. M. �
Richard Urquhart Goode. 1858–1903
” ''Proceedings of the Washington Academy of Sciences'' 5 (1903): 379–80. http://www.jstor.org/stable/24525388.

Career

In 1879, Goode received an appointment from the

U.S. Secretary of the Interior The United States secretary of the interior is the head of the United States Department of the Interior. The secretary and the Department of the Interior are responsible for the management and conservation of most federal land along with natural ...

to be a

with the newly created

(USGS). He was assigned to conduct geographic surveys in

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...

and

Utah Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to it ...

, resulting in what are now called the USGS

Topographic Maps In modern mapping, a topographic map or topographic sheet is a type of map characterized by large- scale detail and quantitative representation of relief features, usually using contour lines (connecting points of equal elevation), but histori ...

. In 1880, he was promoted to supervisor, charged with a survey of the

plateau In geology and physical geography, a plateau (; ; ), also called a high plain or a tableland, is an area of a highland consisting of flat terrain that is raised sharply above the surrounding area on at least one side. Often one or more sides ha ...

region north of the

Grand Canyon The Grand Canyon (, yuf-x-yav, Wi:kaʼi:la, , Southern Paiute language: Paxa’uipi, ) is a steep-sided canyon carved by the Colorado River in Arizona, United States. The Grand Canyon is long, up to wide and attains a depth of over a m ...

Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of t ...

. in 1881, he was assigned to oversee the primary

triangulation In trigonometry and geometry, triangulation is the process of determining the location of a point by forming triangles to the point from known points. Applications In surveying Specifically in surveying, triangulation involves only angle me ...

of the area near

Fort Wingate Fort Wingate was a military installation near Gallup, New Mexico. There were two other locations in New Mexico called Fort Wingate: Seboyeta, New Mexico (1849–1862) and San Rafael, New Mexico (1862–1868). The most recent Fort Wingate (186 ...

New Mexico ) , population_demonym = New Mexican ( es, Neomexicano, Neomejicano, Nuevo Mexicano) , seat = Santa Fe , LargestCity = Albuquerque , LargestMetro = Tiguex , OfficialLang = None , Languages = English, Spanish ( New Mexican), Navajo, Ker ...

. On May 1, 1882, Goode temporarily resigned from the USGS to be a topographer for the Northern Transcontinental Railroad Survey(also called the Northern Pacific Topographical and Scientific Survey), working in

Montana Montana () is a state in the Mountain West division of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota and South Dakota to the east, Wyoming to the south, and the Canadian provinces of Alberta, British Columbi ...

and

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

from 1882 to 1884. On July 23, 1884, Goode rejoined the USGS and supervised surveys in

Kansas Kansas () is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its capital is Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the ...

and

Missouri Missouri is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee ...

. In 1886, he was supervised surveys in

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

, working alongside another team supervised by his cousin Charles Fox Urquhart. In 1888, Goode took another leave of absence from the USGS—this time as an engineer and astronomer to conduct important topographic surveys addressing property rights on the Isthmus of Darian (now called the

Isthmus of Panama The Isthmus of Panama ( es, Istmo de Panamá), also historically known as the Isthmus of Darien (), is the narrow strip of land that lies between the Caribbean Sea and the Pacific Ocean, linking North and South America. It contains the country ...

) for the

Panama Canal Company The Panama Canal Zone ( es, Zona del Canal de Panamá), also simply known as the Canal Zone, was an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the Isthmus of Panama, that existed from 1903 to 1979. It was located within the terr ...

. In 1889, Goode rejoined the USGS and was promoted to the position of

in charge of the Southern Central Division of Topography. In September 1890, the USGS restructured its Topographic Branch into two divisions—Eastern and Western—and Goode was placed in charge of the

-Texas Section of Western Division. In August 1894, Goode was placed in charge of the more important Pacific Section, including

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

Oregon Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. N ...

and

Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S., ...

. Goode worked on the boundary between the United States and Canada in 1898. In 1898, Goode spoke about "The Bitterroot Forest Preserve," now a national forest, at a meeting of the

National Geographic ''National Geographic'' (formerly the ''National Geographic Magazine'', sometimes branded as NAT GEO) is a popular American monthly magazine published by National Geographic Partners. Known for its photojournalism, it is one of the most widely ...

Society at the Columbian University (later

George Washington University , mottoeng = "God is Our Trust" , established = , type = Private federally chartered research university , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $2.8 billion (2022) , preside ...

). In 1900, Goode presented a lecture, "The Topographic Work of the United States Geological Survey," at the

California Academy of Sciences The California Academy of Sciences is a research institute and natural history museum in San Francisco, California, that is among the largest museums of natural history in the world, housing over 46 million specimens. The Academy began in 1853 ...

. In June 1903, Goode was placed in charge of the entire Western Division which included all lands west of the

Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the second-longest river and chief river of the second-largest drainage system in North America, second only to the Hudson Bay drainage system. From its traditional source of Lake Itasca in northern Minnesota, it f ...

. His offices were in

Washington, D.C ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

. requiring Goode to return to the

East Coast East Coast may refer to: Entertainment * East Coast hip hop, a subgenre of hip hop * East Coast (ASAP Ferg song), "East Coast" (ASAP Ferg song), 2017 * East Coast (Saves the Day song), "East Coast" (Saves the Day song), 2004 * East Coast FM, a ra ...

when it was not the summer mapping season. Goode oversaw the Western Division until his death.

Professional affiliations

Goode was a member of the

Washington Academy of Sciences Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered on ...

, the

National Geographic Society The National Geographic Society (NGS), headquartered in Washington, D.C., United States, is one of the largest non-profit scientific and educational organizations in the world. Founded in 1888, its interests include geography, archaeology, and ...

, and the

Cosmos Club The Cosmos Club is a 501(c)(7) private social club in Washington, D.C. that was founded by John Wesley Powell in 1878 as a gentlemen's club for those interested in science. Among its stated goals is, "The advancement of its members in science, ...

where he was also an officer. From 1901 to 1903, he was the chairman of the Committee on Technical Meetings at the

Honors

Several mountains were named in his honor: *

Mount Goode Mount Goode, pronounced like "good", is a prominent glaciated mountain summit located in the Chugach Mountains, in the U.S. state of Alaska. The peak is situated east of Anchorage, northwest of College Fjord, west of Mount Grace (Chugach Moun ...

, a 10,610 foot summit located in the

Chugach Mountains The Chugach Mountains of southern Alaska are the northernmost of the several mountain ranges that make up the Pacific Coast Ranges of the western edge of North America. The range is about long and wide, and extends from the Knik and Turnagain ...

was named for him in 1924. *

Goode Mountain Goode Mountain is one of the major peaks of the North Cascades in the U.S. state of Washington. Named for topographer Richard U. Goode of the USGS, it is the highest peak located in North Cascades National Park, between the Skagit River and ...

, the highest peak in

North Cascades National Park North Cascades National Park is an American national park in the state of Washington. At more than , it is the largest of the three National Park Service units that comprise the North Cascades National Park Complex. North Cascades National Par ...

and fourth highest in

Chelan County, Washington Chelan County (, ) is a List of counties in Washington, county in the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, its population was 79,074. The county seat and largest city is Wenatchee, Washi ...

—which Goode surveyed in 1883. *

Goode Glacier Goode Glacier is in North Cascades National Park in the U.S. state of Washington, on the east slopes of Goode Mountain. Goode Glacier is a hanging glacier and is broken into several sections descending from . Goode Glacier sits more than below th ...

, rises over a vertical mile above the North Fork Bridge Creek valley floor on the northeast face of Goode Mountain, Northern Cascades National Park *

, a 13,085-foot summit on the crest of the

Sierra Nevada The Sierra Nevada () is a mountain range in the Western United States, between the Central Valley of California and the Great Basin. The vast majority of the range lies in the state of California, although the Carson Range spur lies primarily ...

Kings Canyon National Park Kings Canyon National Park is an American national park in the southern Sierra Nevada, in Fresno and Tulare Counties, California. Originally established in 1890 as General Grant National Park, the park was greatly expanded and renamed to Kings ...

, officially named in 1926.

Personal

In 1889, Goode married Sophie Jackson Parks (born November 20, 1860) of

, and the couple resided in

. Parks was the daughter of Marshall Ott Parks—Commodore in the

Confederate Navy The Confederate States Navy (CSN) was the naval branch of the Confederate States Armed Forces, established by an act of the Confederate States Congress on February 21, 1861. It was responsible for Confederate naval operations during the American ...

, member of the

Virginia legislature The Virginia General Assembly is the legislative body of the Commonwealth of Virginia, the oldest continuous law-making body in the Western Hemisphere, the first elected legislative assembly in the New World, and was established on July 30, 1619 ...

, a hotelier, railroad man, president of the

Dismal Swamp Canal The Dismal Swamp Canal is a canal located along the eastern edge of the Great Dismal Swamp in Virginia and North Carolina in the United States. Opened in 1805, it is the oldest continually operating man-made canal in the United States. It is par ...

Company, and Supervising Inspector of Steamboats under

. In 1894, they hired architect Victor Mindeleff to design a three-story stone and brick Colonial–style house for them in the Washington, D.C. neighborhood

Lanier Heights Lanier Heights is a small urban neighborhood located in the northwest section of Washington, D.C. It was one of the early planned subdivisions which were created inside the District of Columbia, but which lay outside of the original, officially ...

. In 1898, Goode was elected to the vestry of St. Margaret's Episcopal Church in Washington, D.C. They had three children: Sophie Parks Goode, Sallie Urquhart Goode, and Richard Alexander Goode. At the age of 45 years, Goode died unexpectedly of

pneumonia Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of productive or dry cough, chest pain, fever, and difficulty breathing. The severity ...

Rockville, Maryland Rockville is a city that serves as the county seat of Montgomery County, Maryland, and is part of the Baltimore–Washington metropolitan area. The 2020 census tabulated Rockville's population at 67,117, making it the fifth-largest community in ...

on July 9, 1903.

Publications

Journals and Books

* ''Analyses of Rocks from the Laboratory of the United States Geological Survey 1880–1899''. With Frank Wigglesworth Clarke,

Henry Gannett Henry Gannett (August 24, 1846 – November 5, 1914) was an American geographer who is described as the "father of mapmaking in America."Evans, Richard Tranter; Frye, Helen M. (2009).History of the Topographic Branch (Division) (PDF). ''U.S. Geo ...

, and Fred Boughton Weeks. United States Geological Survey, 1900. * " Bitter Root Forest Reserve," ''National Geographic Magazine'', September 1898, Vol. 9 Issue 9, p11–24. * " Boundaries of the United States and of the Several States and Territories, with an Outline of the History of All Important Changes of Territory," with

. United States Geological Survey Issues 170-172, 1900. * "The Geography and Geology of Alaska: A Summary of Existing Knowledge," with Alfred Hulse Brooks and

Cleveland Abbe Cleveland Abbe (December 3, 1838 – October 28, 1916) was an American meteorologist and advocate of time zones. While director of the Cincinnati Observatory in Cincinnati, Ohio, he developed a system of telegraphic weather reports, daily we ...

. ''United States Geological Survey Professional Paper'' No. 45, 1906. * ''The Goode Diary: A Personal Journal of the Northern Transcontinental Survey, 1883''. W. S. Dawson, 1990. * "Height of Mt. Rainier," ''

National Geographic Magazine ''National Geographic'' (formerly the ''National Geographic Magazine'', sometimes branded as NAT GEO) is a popular American monthly magazine published by National Geographic Partners. Known for its photojournalism, it is one of the most widely ...

'', March 1898, Vol. 9 Issue 3, p. 97–98. * "The Idaho-Montana Boundary Line," ''

''. January 1900, Vol. 11, Issue 1. pages 23–28. * "Magnetic Declination." ''West Virginia Geological and Economic Survey'', Vol. 1, 1899 * " The Northwestern Boundary between the United States and Canada," ''Journal of the American Geographical Society'' of New York, Vol. 32, No. 5 (1900), pp. 465–470 * "Results of Primary Triangulation and Primary Traverse, Fiscal Year 1901-2." with H. M. Wilson, J. H. Renshaw, and E. M. Douglas. ''Bulletin of'' the ''United States Geological Survey'' No. 201, 1902 * "Results of Spirit-Leveling, Fiscal Year 1900-1901," ''Bulletin of the US Geological Survey'' No. 185, 1901 * ''"''Survey of the Boundary Line between Idaho and Montana, from the International Boundary to the Crest of the Bitterroot Mountains'',"'' ''Bulletin of the United States Geological Survey,'' No. 170, 1900 * "Triangulation, Primary Traverse and Spirit Leveling: 1896/97-1899." with Herbert Michael Wilson, John Henry Renshawe, and E. M. Douglas. ''Annual Report of the United States Geological Survey to the Secretary of the Interior,'' 1900. * ''"''A Trip to Panama and Darien." ''National Geographic Magazine'' Vol. 1, No. 4, 1889.

Maps

The following is an incomplete listing of maps by Goode. The following topographic maps were issued by the United States Geological Survey and were documented in

WorldCat WorldCat is a union catalog that itemizes the collections of tens of thousands of institutions (mostly libraries), in many countries, that are current or past members of the OCLC global cooperative. It is operated by OCLC, Inc. Many of the OCL ...

. Note that Goode is credited for his original triangulation or work on all future editions of maps that rely on that data.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Goode, Richard Urquhart 1858 births 1903 deaths American people of Scottish descent People from Bedford, Virginia University of Virginia alumni United States Army Corps of Engineers personnel United States Geological Survey personnel American geographers American engineers American topographers People from Maryland National Geographic Society 19th-century American Episcopalians 19th-century American non-fiction writers Deaths from pneumonia in Maryland